Pinne Estate’s declaration, supported by the Flaud Estate, cast a dark shadow of war over the Steelwall Estate. Yet, even if they heavily rebuked the Steelwalls for being Bellid supporters and made it sound like they were ready to drag their troops over to the Steelwall Estate, the Pinnes showed no signs of mobilizing their forces at the moment. It wasn’t because they didn’t want war though; the culprit was the rain.

Shaaaaa! Like usual, thick raindrops poured over the Steelwall Estate again. Although water was an essential life supply, there was a limit to how much they could gather at a time. If there was too much, heavy rain could ruin farmlands instead of helping and cause flash floods. Thus, during this season, it was necessary for the Steelwall Estate to keep a close eye on the amount of rain pouring and prepare to limit damages. Yet, this year, one worry blanketed all others: the constantly rising water level of the river. The body of water had expanded in size by so much that it could no longer even be called a river. It was more like a lake.

The land around that area was submerged in water, and everything that was on it—the houses, fields, paths, and forests disappeared underneath. As water characteristically...